The XVI Moscow Easter Festival took place in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory on 16 April. The musical forum has started with performance of the concert of the symphonic orchestra of the Saint-Petersburg Mariinsky Theatre headed by the People’s Artist of the Russian Federation Valery Gergiyev and piano-virtuoso Denis Matsuyev.

The Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin was one of the guests of the XVI festival, dedicated to 135 anniversary of Igor Stravinsky.

The Investigative Committee has a long history of cooperation with the art director and director of the State Academic Mariinsky Therater Valery Gergiyev. In December of the last year Alexander Bastrykin and Valery Gergiyev signed an agreement between the Investigative Committee and the Theater about cooperation in the field of cultural and patriotic upbringing.

The Chairman of the Russian Investigative Committee several times noted merits of the People’s Artist not only in culture, but also his invaluable contribution to cultural and spiritual upbringing of Russian citizens, especially youth, giving them a sense of respect and involvement into great history and complex culture of Russia, continuity of generations and respect to achievements of older generations. Valery Gergiyev was awarded Medal of the Investigative Committee “For Purity of Thought and Noble Deeds”, as well as he is a honorary member of the Public Council of the Russian Investigative Committee.

The music festival will join 20 regions of Russia as a national cultural symbol. Musicians of the Mariinsky Theater Symphonic Orchestra will perform in Kazan, Almetyevsk, Naberezhnye Chelny, Orenburg, Magnitogorsk, Yekaterinburg, Surgut, Tyumen, Novosibirsk, Kemerovo, Tomsk, Omsk, Perm, Ulyanovsk, Saransk, Nizhny Novgorod, Vladimir, Tula, Kursk and many other cities. The final concert will be performed at Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow at Victory Day, 9 May.

Official spokesperson for the RF Investigative Committee S.L. Petrenko